New York Jets Three Keys to Success to Beat Minnesota Vikings

Here are three keys to success for the New York Jets as they prepare for their next game with the Minnesota Vikings.

Sep 9, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; New York Jets running back Braelon Allen (0) rushes the ball and eludes San Francisco 49ers safety George Odum (30) in the fourth quarter at Levi's Stadium. / David Gonzales-Imagn Images

The New York Jets are smarting from their loss to the Denver Broncos and it’s been playing out in real time over the past few days.

From the “cadence” conversation to the criticism being levied at coach Robert Saleh, the Jets (2-2) head to London to face the Minnesota Vikings (4-0) and their old starting quarterback, Sam Darnold.

The Jets don’t leave for London until Thursday night and when they do they’ll have the majority of their prep wrapped up for the game.

Can the Jets get back over .500? Or will they fall below that line for the second time this season?

Here are the Jets’ three keys to success in this game.

Get The Run Game Going

Sunday’s loss to Denver was defined, in part, by the lack of a run game. After two weeks of seeing Breece Hall and Braelon Allen play off one another, the pair were unable to get on track. Allen rushed for 34 yards on eight carries while Hall had just four yards on 10 carries.

The team’s 40-year-old quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, was the Jets’ second-leading rusher in the game. Not ideal.

Some of it was play-calling on the Jets’ part. Some of it was poor execution when it comes to pre-snap penalties. Some of it was the Broncos’ defense.

Whatever the factors were, the Jets have to find a way to get both running backs on track this week as a way of taking some pressure off Rodgers and the pass game.

Eliminate the Penalties

New York committed 13 penalties against Denver and the Jets’ offense was responsible for eight of them. From pre-snap penalties to holds, the New York offense was, in many ways, its own worst enemy.

The post-game led to a conversation about the offense’s cadence, with even coach Robert Saleh saying the pre-snap cadences used by Rodgers might change. They won’t, by the way, in part because Rodgers has been using those cadences his entire career. He’d rather hold the players accountable for the mistakes. He also pointed out the Jets’ offense only had one pre-snap penalty in their first three games.

Aberration or trend? We’ll find out more on Sunday in London.

Stymie Sam

This is not the Sam Darnold the Jets took as their first-round pick in 2018. He’s so much better — or at least he’s off to the best start of his career.

He’s a big reason why the Vikings are undefeated. He’s thrown for 932 yards and 11 touchdowns and three interceptions. He has also completed 68.9 percent of his passes. With coach Kevin O’Connell calling the shots, Darnold’s play has responded.

But, the Jets know him well enough to take shots at him all afternoon. New York has a pass rush that can impart pressure and pain on the veteran quarterback all day. For the Jets to win, they have to make Darnold’s life miserable.